31st May 2003 Beachy Head 6.00am – 11.00am. Very hot and sunny. Light NE wind

Swallow c.8

Firecrest 1

29th May 2003 Chelwood Gate 8.00pm – 9.45pm. Calm and sunny

Woodcock c.3 roding

Nightjar 1 male churring and wing-clapped three times. White corners of tail seen in flight. Another h.
Dartford Warbler 1 scolding male seen with another h.
Willow Warbler h
Redpoll 1
Bullfinch 1 near Chailey

26th May 2003 Beachy 6.30am – 1.30pm. Light S. Sunny

Scoter c.20E
Peregrine c.2
Commic Tern c.30E
Roseate Tern 1E at c.6.45. Passed at medium range with a group of Commic Terns. It appeared wholly very white with no hint of darker underparts/belly. Appeared very slighty smaller and slimmer than accompanying Commic Terns. Tail streamers appeared long.
Black Tern 2E
Auk sp c.3E
Swallow c.10
House Martin c.10
Lesser Whitethroat c.2
Whitethroat c.20
Reed Warbler 1 singing

25th May 2003 Beachy 6.30am – 12.00pm. Light SW. Sunny

Sandwich Tern c.7E

Swallow c.10
House Martin c.15
Lesser Whitethroat c.4
Whitethroat c.20
Reed Warbler 1 singing

24th May 2003 Beachy 6.30am – 1.00pm. Light SW. Overcast

Peregrine 2
Arctic Skua 1E
Stock Dove 1
Cuckoo 1
Swift 1
Swallow c.20
House Martin c.8
Stonechat c.10 including first juveniles. Three males all showing white rumps.
Blackcap h
Lesser Whitethroat c.3
Whitethroat c.10
Reed Warbler c.12 all singing
Chiffchaff c.3
Spotted Flycatcher 1
Corn Bunting 1

22nd May 2003 Dursey Sound, Ireland 11.45 – 2.00pm. Lady’s Island Lake 7.00 – 8.00pm. Moderate SW wind becoming strong. Rain in morning clearing before reaching Dursey

Great Crested Grebe 2
Gannet c.5
Cormorant c.10
Little Egret 1
Gadwall 1
Mediterranean Gull 1 adult
Sandwich Tern c.50
Common Tern c.50
Roseate Tern 1 adult bill appeared black with long white tail streamers Lady’s Island Lake
Black Guillemot 2 Rosslare
Pied Wagtail c.15
Willow Warbler h
Chough 2 Dursey
Hooded Crow c.10
WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW 1 ex. adult lacking its tail. Dursey

White-crowned Sparrow at Dursey, Co. Cork (Adrian Webb)

7th May 2003 Goring Gap 11.30am – 11.50am. Calm, sunny and clear

Shoveler 2
BLUE-WINGED TEAL 1 drake Sat on sea c.40m offshore with the pair of Shoveler. Long black bill. Black forehead. Large white crescent in front of eye running vertically down head – at top of crescent white line extending horizontally bordering crown-sides. Ear coverts and neck sides slaty-blue. Breast and flanks brown peppered with large dark spots. Large white spot at rear of flanks. Undertail-coverts black. Superb flight view as it at first flew east, circled back in front of us and then headed west. Forearm a rich blue bordered at rear by white line narrowing towards body. Primaries black. Underwings strikingly white. Sussex addition.

5th May 2003 Beachy 5.30am – 11.45am. Newhaven 12.00 – 12.15pm. Dungeness 3.00pm – 6.30pm. Light S wind becoming stronger. Overcast

Diver sp. 1E
Fulmar c.10
Barnacle Geese 5 Scotney
Shelduck 6 Newhaven
Tufted Duck c.15 Scotney
Scoter c.25E
Common Buzzard 1 over rides above Hollow
Sparrowhawk 1
Peregrine 4
Little Ringed Plover 1 Newhaven
Redshank 1
Pomarine Skua 1E hanging around offshore for c.10 mins whilst made prolonged pursuits of c.5 Kittiwakes.
Arctic Skua c.3E
Black-headed Gull c.50E
Herring Gull c.50 Dungeness
AUDOUIN’S GULL 1 second Summer. Long, dark red bill with black terminal band. Long gape-line. Blue-grey legs and feet. Head white with feint darker brow. Breast white with belly washed grey. Hindneck grey as was mantle and upperwings. Primaries very long being black. Tail white with broad black subterminal tail band. In flight inner primaries grey but most primaries wholly black. Well-defined black bar on secondaries with narrow white trailing edge.
Sandwich Tern c.15E
Commic Tern c.10E
Swift c.10 Newhaven
Swallow c.10
House Martin 1
Pied Wagtail 1
Wheatear 1 Dungeness
Lesser Whitethroat 2
Whitethroat c.20
Chiffchaff h
Goldfinch 30
Reed Bunting 1 Scotney
Yellowhammer 1
Corn Bunting

 Audouin's Gull at Dungeness (Johnny Allan)

4th May 2003 Beachy 5.30am – 11.50am. Clear with light SSE wind

Black-throated Diver 1E

Red-throated Diver 1E
Fulmar c.15
Gannet c.15
Brent Goose 1E
Eider c.8E
Scoter c.50E
Velvet Scoter 2E
Sparrowhawk 2 flew east along cliff-edge
Grey Plover 2E
Pomarine Skua 5 - 6E a party of 3 sat on the water and occasionally flying east followed by 2 behaving similarly with a third bird almost certainly a Pom without a tail
Arctic Skua c.3E
Sandwich Tern c.30E
Commic Tern c.100E
Black Tern c.5E
Auk sp. C.10E
Swift c.1
Swallow c.15
House Martin c.5
White Wagtail 1 male on Birling lawns. Black crown contrasting with grey mantle.
Stonechat c.4
Whitethroat c.15
Chiffchaff h
House Sparrow c.10
Linnet c.8
Corn Bunting 1

3rd May 2003 Beachy 5.45am – 2.30pm. Arlington 2.45pm – 3.30pm. Strong cold WSW and overcast

Fulmar c.20
Manx Shearwater 1W
Gannet c.20E
Scoter c.20E
Peregrine 2
Bar-tailed Godwit 1E
Whimbrel 6E
Bonxie 6E
Pomarine Skua 7E
Arctic Skua c.12E
Little Gull 1 1s Arlington
Kittiwake c.30
Sandwich Tern c.20E
Auk sp. C.5E
Swift c.8 in-off, c.10 Cuckmere, c.10 Arlington
Sand Martin c.5 Arlington
Swallow c.20 Beachy, c.15 Cuckmere, c.50 Arlington
Red-rumped Swallow 2 Arlington
House Martin c.20 Cuckmere, c.20 Arlington
Stonechat c.6
Lesser Whitethroat 1 + 2h
Whitethroat c.15
Chiffchaff h
Long-tailed Tit 1
Yellowhammer 2

1st May 2003 Arlington 7.15am – 8.00am. Overcast with moderate SW wind

Swift 1
House Martin c.5
Red-rumped Swallow 2 one individual had white streaks to the mantle which the other lacked
Swallow c.50